Lost Season 5 Finale – "The Incident"

Gadang. That's all I can say. That's like a dang, but with a Ga at the beginning. For more impact. That was a really amazing finale. There's a heck of a lot to talk about and a lot of new questions. Not the least of which is... why did Jacob give Jack a candy bar? If you had said to me a week ago, "In the season finale, I predict Jacob will give Jack a candy bar, because Jack's will get stuck in the machine" I would have told you that was a preposterous theory. But you would have been right, apparently. Maybe I should be reading start your blog. Ok, here goes.


JACOB MAKES A QUILT: So, we kicked the whole thing off with Jacob spinning yarn for a quilt. There's a shot of his foot, and I think he has five toes. Not four. But it's really hard to tell the way they shot it. What do you think? I'm guessing the four-toed statue is just four-toed because it's some weird Egyptian thing. But I just wanted you all to know I counted his toes, so, sleep easy.


DUDES ON A BEACH: Next, there was a confusing conversation in the past between Jacob and some other dude. It's maybe a little too early to tell, but I think this other dude is our official bad guy. We've waited a long time to meet him. I know he might really be the good guy, and Jacob could be bad, but I don't think so. Since we don't know his name, but will have to repeatedly refer to him as something, I propose we call him Anti-Jacob. My friend Zach suggested that his name might turn out to be Esau, which was Jacob's brother and enemy in the Bible. I think that's a good guess. And it looks to me as if this Anti-Jacob dude was the ghostly guy trapped inside the Cabin that we thought was Jacob before. My first clue towards that was that he had a really deep voice, like the "Help me..." that Locke heard in the Cabin back in the episode The Man Behind The Curtain. Because Jacob's voice wasn't that low. But we'll get into that more later. So Jacob and Anti-Jacob have a really interesting (and strangely modern-sounding) conversation as they watch what I assume is the Black Rock sail towards the island. Anti-Jacob accuses Jacob of bringing the people on the Black Rock to the island, and adds "Still trying to prove me wrong, aren't you?" Jacob says "You are wrong." Anti-Jacob says that people always come and fight and destroy, and it "always ends the same." Jacob replies: "It only ends once. Anything that happens before that is just progress." Confused yet? I had to watch this part five times before I would even watch the rest of the episode. Anti-Jacob then ruins the conversation by saying, "Do you have any idea how badly I want to kill you?" He then says one day he will find a loophole. Jacob says, "When you do, I'll be right here." Which turns out to be true. What does all this mean? I have NO IDEA. I'm guessing that's what we'll be learning about in Season 6. But man, talk about shocking openings. And... pull out to reveal a giant statue with the face of Muttley.




YOUNG KATE LIKES THE NEW KIDS: Man, that New Kids lunchbox made me feel super old. I was in high school while 6 year old Kate was stealing lunchboxes. Anyway, that little actress did a dead-on Kate impersonation. Right down to the pained look of exasperated disdain. So, this is the first of a series of Jacob flashbacks where Jacob gets involved with our Losties. Here, he tries to tell Kate not to steal. But when does she ever listen?

RICHARD QUESTIONS JOHN: Richard wants to know how Locke came back from the dead. It turns out Richard was right to be suspicious of Locke, because he's apparently not really Locke. Remember when Richard said last episode "You look... different". He was a wolf in Locke's clothing the whole time, as we later learn he's possessed by Anti-Jacob, and apparently Evil. Evil Locke tells Richard that he wants to "thank" Jacob for bringing him back to life. He also says afterward they will have to "deal with" everyone from the Anjira flight. Does that include Sun?

ILANA, BRAM, AND FRANK: All ride across the water in one of the outrigger canoes. I was sure we were going to see them fire at another canoe in the distance, the one with Sawyer and Juilet in it from their time-jumping days, but we didn't. I'm actually really surprised by that. Maybe it was filmed but they took that scene out because it ruined the flow of the episode? Because I can't imagine them going back to explain that in Season 6. Especially since they tied up most of the other time travel loose ends this season. Anyway, Ilana thinks that Frank is a "candidate" to join their Jacob-loyal group. I like Frank, too; I'd let him join the club as well. For instance, when they open the casket to show Frank what we later learn is Locke's body, his response is: "Terrific". Followed later by "I really wish you hadn't shown me that." Ha.


YOUNG TOM SAWYER, HE'S A WRITING MAN: Next we see Sawyer as a kid writing his sad letter. Jacob, who seems like a pretty decent guy, really, hands him a pen. A REVENGE pen. Watching this, I wondered if Jacob also later told Richard to get Locke to lead Sawyer to the Black Rock to kill Locke's Dad in order to help him get his revenge?


JULIET ROCKS THE SUB ESCAPE: While Kate and Sawyer bicker, Juliet does some Kung Fu and gets them off the submarine. How Sawyer can still be looking at Kate when Juliet is around is beyond me. She's clearly the better of the two, which only makes what happens later more painful. And annoying. But we'll get to that in a bit.

JACK TELLS RICHARD TO TRUST LOCKE while Sayid disassembles his last bomb in the background. Well, I guess Jack was wrong, again. Evil Locke is not super trustworthy. Apparently, Jack has been played like a fiddle. Much like Locke was.


NADIA GETS HIT BY A CAR: This was a surprising scene, because it really looked like Jacob was making sure Nadia got killed. Is this because it was the only way he'd ever get Sayid back to the island? And who drove the car? Widmore's people? Ben? Jacob's people? So, Jacob wants Kate NOT to steal, Sawyer TO write a revenge letter, and Sayid to have no wife. I think in all cases his motivation is to get people where they need to be to go on Flight 815. Maybe bailing young Kate out of trouble and keeping her from going to the police as a child actually kept her from learning about consequences, and encouraged her on the road to blowin' up stepdads and robbing banks somehow. Interesting that we're seeing that Jacob was the one guiding everyone to be on Flight 815 (and Flight 316, in Ilana and Hurley's case.) If he's guiding people to be on Flight 316 then he must know of Anti-Jacob's plan, somewhat. Right? Because if Jacob knows he needs Ilana's help, then he knows that Evil Locke will be coming and Richard will need to see proof that he's an imposter Locke.


RICHARD HAS A SLEDGE HAMMER: I like how it took Richard a minute to remember which rock he should bust to knock a hole in the temple wall to get to the Dharma basement. It was the giant, lighter colored rock that you had to hit. It was like a Scooby Doo clue. Also, why didn't Dharma notice the temple ruins as they dug the basement? They're terrible scientists. Richard also demonstrates a unique form of submission as he conks his leader on the head with the butt of his gun. At least he didn't use the sledgehammer.

SAYID GETS SHOT! Well, I have to say my wife was really sad about this. Methinks she did protest a bit too loudly. Why do the hot ones die so soon? Sigh. Well, I guess his fate is still unknown, but Jin Paper-toweled up a lot of Sayid blood this episode (the Sawyer/Jack chat n' brawl must have cost Sayid about 12 pints alone), so we'll see. In 2010. Is that even a real year that's about to happen? Sheesh. Sounds so far away. Like, Rocketpack/Spaceship far. I did notice that Roger carefully shot Sayid in the same place that Sayid shot his son, Ben. Do you know what we call that? Dharma Karma.


ROSE AND BERNARD! Were lame the whole time. Seriously? They built a retirement home? Bernard even grew a Castaway beard. And, apparently they've stopped watching the show Lost. They don't care what happens anymore. But the question still remains... are they or are they not going to die in a cave as they play backgammon? At least they explained why they were never found by Jin. They were hiding. Also, what was up with Bernard's strangely poignant offer to Juilet to stay for tea? I guess this was supposed to show that Juliet realized that Rose and Bernard were living the life that she wanted to have with Sawyer.

BRAM EXPLAINS THE BODY: Frank and Bram have a moment where they talk about Locke's body, and Frank asks why they are carrying it with them. Bram claims they want to show everyone what they're "up against", and that whatever that is, is something "a hell of a lot scarier" than Locke's body. Bram also claims that they're the good guys. Frank is doubtful, but I think they're telling the truth.


GOODBYE, JACOB'S CABIN (OR NOT JACOB'S CABIN): So, Ilana goes into Jacob's cabin, obviously worried about something. Bram points out that the line of Ash has been broken. We've talked about this before, but a line of ash in movie clichés usually means you've trapped a spirit within the ash. Remember a few episodes ago in "Dead is Dead" when Locke went into the woods to do something, but we didn't know what? Maybe he went to find thia cabin and break the ash line to release the spirit. We see in a brief flashback that Ilana is in a hospital with what looks like a burn injury and Jacob comes in and apparently chats with her about getting back to the island. So, we know Ilana is loyal to Jacob. So what is she afraid of as she enters the cabin? I think the cabin is a place where a spirit has been imprisoned. The spirit can move the cabin around the island (like when it chased Hurley around). Christian Shephard is also a form that the spirit has taken. And I think Jacob trapped the evil Anti-Jacob in this cabin somehow. Ben found the weird cabin and didn't understand it, but pretended that it was Jacob to fool Locke, but was surprised when something actually happened as he was pretending. Since that time the evil spirit has been leading Locke and manipulating him. He appeared as Walt to trick him. He even appeared as Christian Shepard. Is this spirit the same thing as the smoke monster? I don't know for sure, but I do think it was the evil spirit that appeared to Ben in the form of Alex and told him to follow Locke. I think that's why Locke wasn't in the same room with Ben when it all happened. Also, the evil spirit likes paintings of dogs. Ilana comes out of the cabin and says "He isn't there. He hasn't been in a long time. Someone else is using it." Does that mean that Jacob used to use the cabin? Is the "someone else" Ben or the evil spirit of Anti-Jacob? Confusing. Then they burn the cabin to the ground, ignoring Frank's safety concerns.


JACOB HEALS LOCKE: So, Locke falling from the sky behind a calm Jacob was a very cool scene. And it also explains how Locke could survive the fall from the 30 gazillionth floor. Does this mean Jacob did want Locke to come to the island originally? But Anti-Jacob brought him back to life the second time?

LOCKE AND BEN HAVE A CHAT: So, this Evil Locke still has the memories of the old Locke, I guess. Because he asks Ben to explain what happened in Jacob's cabin long ago. Ben claims he made it all up because he was embarrassed that he had never seen Jacob. I think Evil Locke already knew all the answers to the this question, though. He just wanted the chance to manipulate Ben into killing Jacob, as he ends the conversation with a long speech about how Jacob made life hard for Ben. But was it true? Evil Locke says Ben's loyal service was betrayed by Jacob. But I would argue Ben never had loyalty to the island in mind. Jacob let him get cancer because he was leading the people with false intent. And then Alex got shot because Ben wasn't willing to leave the island, not because Ben was loyal to the island.


SUN AND JIN GET MARRIED: And Jacob is there to congratulate them. I'm not sure what this accomplishes for Jacob, but maybe he just wanted to encourage them to stick together. Also, he knew fluent Korean, as did Charlotte. Is there some connection between Charlotte and Jacob? Probably not, but who knows. Is Jacob the one who split Sun and Jin up, time-wise? Does he feel guilty about that, and that's why he's encouraging them to stay together, no matter what happens?


SAWYER AND JACK CHAT: Man, the next few scenes were kind of annoying. First off, Sawyer is right as usual and presents a really good case as to why Jack is a selfish jerk for blowing up the bomb. Jack admits he just wants to blow up the bomb to have another chance with Kate. I have to side with Sawyer. JUST GO TALK TO HER, JACK. Isn't saying I'm sorry I was drunk and stupid easier then blowing up a bomb while getting shot at? Also, on a side note, I'm really surprised Jin didn't realize that if they blow up the bomb and start time over, his daughter will never be born. Why was he helping them? Sawyer beats the crap out of Jack, and again, Jack deserves every last punch and groin kick.


JACK'S FLASHBACK: Ok, this one really gets me. During the Sawyer and Jack discussion we flash back to see Christian Shepard teaching his whiny son yet another life lesson. Then Jacob shows up... to deliver Jack his lost candy bar. Really? He brings Locke back to life, helps kill Nadia, helps Sawyer right his revenge letter, but Jacob only gives Jack a CANDY BAR? Maybe it's because he knows Jack is pretty ineffectual and doesn't really care if he comes back to the island or not. I mean, I know it's an Apollo Bar, which has some kind of weird relationship to the island, or at least Dharma, but still. Maybe if Jack didn't get that candy bar of encouragement, he would have gone home and started growing a pill-popping beard in another fit of depression. Man. I wish Jack had gotten sucked into the magnetic hatch hole.


JULIET CHANGES HER MIND: This part REALLY annoyed me. Why did Juliet change her mind about stopping Jack? It really didn't make any sense. Again, if you're mad at Sawyer, Juliet, just TALK TO HIM ABOUT IT. Don't blow up a bomb and start life over again. He's trying hard to be faithful, he can't help it that his ex-girlfriend won't stop weaseling her way into everything. I guess we're supposed to assume the divorce of her parents explains her inability to just work things out with Sawyer, but that part of the script was annoying to me.


JACOB GIVES HURLEY THE GUITAR: I guess there really is a guitar in that case. Charlie's guitar, I suppose, which maybe just helped with the whole historical accuracy thing of making sure that Flight 316 was as close to Flight 815 as possible. So, Jacob says that Hurley's ability to talk to dead people means that he's blessed. So, I guess that means the ghosts Hurley is seeing aren't evil ghosts like Evil Locke? Maybe some of the ghosts/spirits that appear on the show are supposed to be from Heaven and some from Hell? Is Jacob talking about being blessed a subtle reference to the biblical Jacob's blessing that he tricked his brother Esau into giving him?


JACK WEARS THE BOMB ON HIS BACK: And totally looks like a Ghostbuster. Just wanted to point that out. Bustin' makes me feel good!

MILES RELAYS MY THEORY TO EVERYONE: Miles suggests that the bomb causes the Incident. Is he right? I still think so. Which would mean Juliet is dead, Sayid is dying, the hatch gets built as always, and our Losties have flashed into another time period. Either the distant past, or, probably more likely, the present time of the island, where Sun and Richard are now. Or maybe they're still stuck in the 70s, but I doubt it. I guess there's also a chance they all died in the 70s with the blast and next Season will just be Sun, Richard and Frank plus all the other new people. But I doubt it.


THE HATCH GETS MAGNETIC: Phil gets stabbed with a metal rod. Pierre Chang loses his arm. Jack gets Toy Story-ed with a tool box to the back of the head. And, sadly, Juliet gets preposterously wrapped up in a plot-device-love-triangle-clearing up metal chain. I really didn't like that. I guess I'm a Suliet fan. Or Jawyer. Or whatever. Also, Kate's "I can't reach her..." Lame. She can reach a mango in the farthest branch of a tree she's scaling if she's hungry enough. If Sawyer doesn't turn anti-Jack after all this then I'll be surprised. And Anti-Kate. Farewell, Juliet.


RICHARD ANSWERS THE "WHAT LIES IN THE SHADOW" QUESTION: Or should I say "RICARDOS"? Apparently Richard answered the question in Latin, and according to Lospedia the translation is: "He who will protect/save us all". As far as the Ricardos goes, My guess is that Richard came to the island on the Black Rock, back when his name was Ricardos. Jacob healed him from something and gave him long life, asking in return that he act as his servant. Then eventually he got tired of being called Ricardos. Or, the island is Fantasy Island, and he's Ricardo Montalban. Ilana shows Richard Locke's body. So, Locke is really dead, I guess. That's sad news. If we really lost Locke, Juliet, Sayid and Daniel then that's a pretty rough end to Season 5. But I guess Sayid can still come back if they magically appear next to a blood bank in the Season 6 opening.


JACOB GETS KILLED: Jacob looks resigned to Evil Locke's "loophole". This whole scene had a lot of similarities to when Jesus was betrayed by Judas. First, Locke says to Ben: "Do what I asked you to". When Judas showed up with the Roman Guard, he first came up and kissed Jesus, but Jesus said "My friend, go ahead and do what you have come for". Which is kinda similar. Also, Jacob did not really resist Evil Locke's plan, which was Jesus-like of him. It's also interesting that Evil Locke needed a real human to do his stabbing for him. Like Satan would, I suppose. It will certainly be interesting to find out what all this stuff means, and what all is at stake with the death of Jacob. Does Richard instantly age to death once Jacob is dead? I hope not. Also, couldn't Jacob have said one kind word to Ben? Or is it more that he knows Ben is evil and won't have anything to do with him? Maybe because Ben went into the Temple and was healed as a child, which turned him evil? Could the temple with the smoke monster have something to do with Anti-Jacob and evilness? We also learn in this scene that Richard gave Ben Jacob's lists, which explains the lists that the Others had in Seasons One and Two which told them who was accepted by Jacob and who wasn't.

JACOB'S LAST WORDS: Jacob's final statement is "They're coming". What could that possibly refer to? Ilana and Bram? I'm guessing more than that. Nice tease for Season Six.


BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE JULIET: I certainly didn't expect to see Juliet again, and so soon. And still alive. I'm glad that they gave her the final shot of the season, though. And what a really great cliffhanger. She even got to use Sawyer's catch phrase before detonating the bomb, even though Bernard tried to steal it earlier in the episode.

So, that's it until next year What does it all mean? I have no idea. But here are some additional thoughts.

THE WAR? Apparently the "War" Widmore was referring to was Jacob vs. Anti-Jacob. Which I guess will still go on after Jacob's death, with Jacob's followers vs. Evil Locke and Ben. But what was Jacob up to? He was apparently continually bringing people to the island in an attempt to do something. But his enemy thwarted him and "found a loophole" in Jacob's continually recurring plan and put a stop to it. Except I'm thinking there's one person who can come back and cause more problems for Anti-Jacob, and that's Desmond. Desmond has the power to change the past, right? Or he's special or something. I dunno.

BEN LIES: Also, we now know that Ben was lying about a LOT in the past. He was lying about the cabin, and probably lying about having to kill your father and Jacob wanting to solve the infertility issues. But he was still getting orders from Jacob through Richard, so it's up in the air what was Ben and what was actually Jacob. I'm confused as to why Richard allowed Ben to be the leader for so long. If Richard was always able to talk to Jacob, why didn't Jacob just tell him Ben was lying about things? Or can Richard actually go in and see Jacob?


NO CLAIRE? I was surprised we didn't see Claire in the finale. The closest we got was a glimpse of Charlie's DriveShaft ring left in Aaron's old crib. I'm guessing next season we'll see Sun give that back to Claire?

One last theory:


JACOB'S BLESSING: I noticed that Jacob used the word "blessed" or "blessing" with Hurley and with Sun and Jin. And I think he placed his hand on just about everybody at some point. Is there some kind of biblical blessing/mark/birthright that he's placing on all his chosen people? Like a mark to protect them or guide them to the island? That would explain why he gave everybody something. It would also explain the candy bars, which I thought had no explanation. Maybe the candy bar scene was even a clue from the writers. Obviously the candy bars weren't important... so what was important about Jacob's interaction with Jack. Maybe his touch? Scroll back up and look at the pictures of Jacob's flashbacks and notice all the physical contact. It looks to me like pains were taken to show close ups of the pen and the candy bar changing hands. Maybe the touch is what allowed them to survive a plane crash in the first place?

I'm sure there are a ton more questions and theories to unearth, and there's plenty of time to think about them over the long break between seasons. I'll probably be posting thoughts and theories for the next week or so and then only randomly whenever there's news between Seasons. Let me know your thoughts and theories.